“Now I’m taking command,” born-and-bred Roman Verdone said as he was given the mayor’s tricolour sash during a ceremony at city hall.
“I have to thank Roberto for a gift like this.
“I have loved this city so much and suddenly it is embracing me.
“Roberto had this idea, this sensitivity, and I must say he gave me the most beautiful gift one could receive.”
The only other person to have received such an honour was another Italian comedy great, the late actor Alberto Sordi, who was made mayor for a day by then mayor Francesco Rutelli for his 80th birthday on June 15, 2000.
After the ceremony, Verdone and Gualtieri set off for a series of engagements on the outskirts of the Italian capital.
“I chose to go to the outer suburbs because these places seem to me to be the most interesting ones, the most creative ones,” he said.
“We need to give them a boost of hope, especially by focusing on young people who can have ideas.”
Verdone is best known for his decades-long career starring in and directing comedies, but he also played a dramatic role in Paolo Sorrentino’s 2013 Oscar-winning film The Great Beauty.
ANSA
